a. Fats
Edible fats and oils ("fats") are organic compounds composed of three fatty acids attached to the glycerol molecule and are also known as triglycerides. Major types of fatty acids are saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated.
The body needs a small amount of fats to carry fat soluble vitamins, to store energy, to cushion and protect vital organs, to insulate the body thermally, to give shape to the body and to regulate cellular metabolism. Non-essential fatty acids are made by the body itself, but essential fatty acids must be obtained dietetically through the foods we eat. But, fatty foods are high in calories (9 calories per gram of fat) and too much dietetic fat is bad for many reasons.
It is now well recognized and generally accepted, as demonstrated and proven by numerous scientific studies, that there is a close relationship between the amount of fat in one's diet and the risk of developing a life threatening disease. Fats saturated with hydrogen cause the body to produce more cholesterol which has been linked to coronary disease known as atherosclerosis (plague build-up on artery walls). Oil, composed mainly of polyunsaturated fats, in large quantities may increase the risk of cancer, and high fat diets generally have been scientifically linked to breast, colon, pancreas and prostate cancer. Importantly, fatty foods cause obesity. One reason is that it takes less energy (fewer calories) to convert fat to stored fat cells in the body than, other foods, such as, foods high in carbohydrates.
Fats and oils are now recommended by the U.S. government to be the smallest part of one's diet and are to be used sparingly. Most major health organizations now recommend that not more than thirty percent (30%) of the total calorie intake be from fat, and it has been scientifically established that keeping the dietetic percent calories from fat below ten percent (10%) on average, not only helps to avoid obesity, coronary disease and certain cancers, but also, can actually reverse atherosclerosis over a long time period. The Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") has now approved a new food label which will require listing the grams of fat and the calories from fat in the food.
One tablespoon of a vegetable oil contains 14 grams of fat, 126 calories and 100% of the calories are from the fat. Most common oils and fats are high in saturated fats and/or polyunsaturated fats.
Thus, it is now well recognized that one of the best choices of foods is a fat-free food. As defined by the FDA, fat-free means the food product must have less than 0.5 grams of fat per serving. It is an object of the present invention to produce fat-free food products.